First time booking everything on my own -- why am I so nervous???

[jt58203]

I'm planning my second cruise. With my first cruise I had the cruiseline take care of everything--flights, pre-cruise hotel, transfers to/from ship. I really loved not having to worry about anything. Now with cruise bargains popping up, flucuating air fares, etc. I'd love to overcome my biggest fear/nervousness and book everything on my own. I'd most likely fly in the day ahead & take the hotel shuttle. What if there isn't a hotel shuttle and I take a cab. They want me to drop my lugguage of where??? Is it like checking in at an airport? There I go again (panic mode!) Have any tips?

[WendyCn]

We booked our 1st cruise through a TA. The 2nd one I decided that I wanted to do it on my own. I did spend a lot of time researching. But I believe I did as well as the TA.

 

I definitely recommend flying in the day before. Check out the hotels by doing a search on these boards for the places you are considering. There are great tips such as reviews and discount codes. There are hotels that offer shuttles from the airports to the hotel, and from the hotel to the port. Both the shuttles and taxis are well versed in what to do when you get to the port. Again these boards are a wealth of information.

 

And, you can use sources such as Travelocity & Orbitz to help with flights & hotels. Do be careful, though, if you book flights as sometimes they try to change your flight times without you even knowing it & you'll need to be sure that you book a flight at least after noon on your return flight. Check your reservation online frequently to be sure that they don't make any changes without you being aware of them.

 

We also get travel insurance. However not every policy is created equal. Do your research to be sure you are getting a good price and be aware of what is actually covered.

 

But, whether you decide to book it all on your own or through a TA, you don't want to stress yourself out. I do it because I enjoy booking it all on my own; it helps make the time go faster and I am in control of what we do, when we do it. ;)

[cb at sea]

There's no reason to be a basketcase about this! It's not rocket science!!!!

If you really don't think you can do it, go to a TA!!! Let THEM do the work! It won't (or shouldn't) cost you a penny!

Nowadays, it's so easy to make your own arrangements, if you have a bit of time.

But if you'd rather someone else do it, let them! That's their job!!! And they need work!!!

[gargoyle999]

DW planned my first cruise in 2006 through a TA so all I had to do was show up basically. Well I guess we picked out our own excursions.

 

This time I've done ALL the planning for our cruise in Nov and one after in Feb. Have booked the cruise, researched the best cabin, picked out excursions both with the ship on independent, booked flights, hotels, rental cars, trip insurance, everything.

 

My advice is to visit here and ask questions. I've only been on one cruise but feel like I've been on many more from the information I've found on this site.

 

I really enjoy the planning portion and spending time looking into all kinds of details of various options. It's fun! Now if only I could get someone else to pay for it all! :D

[paul929207]

Step back and take a deep breath. Do you fee better? I hope so.

 

Just make a list of the things you need to arrange - cruise, flights, hotel, transfers, etc. Work you way down the list.

 

Then, have a great cruise.

[jt58203]

Thanks for all the great advice! There's a first time for everything so I want to take the plunge. I know I can save at least $500-$600 which is very significant. I do have a lot of time to research as I probably won't be booking for at least another couple of months. I'll try not to worry too much.

[RoofingPrincess]

They want me to drop my lugguage of where??? Is it like checking in at an airport?

It's very much like curbside check-in at the airport. I've done it myself on three of my last five cruises (the other two I was travelling with a large group that came by bus).

There will be porters with BIG luggage carts. Depending on how many other people are arriving around the same time you are, they may be very easy to find. Generally they're all wearing a uniform of some sort; on my Carnival cruise out of Galveston, they were all wearing the same printed Hawaiian-style shirts, with nametags. They will make sure you have cruiseline baggage tags on your bags and then whisk them away to be combined with other bags and transferred to the ship. If you forget to put your tags on, and don't know your cabin number, they should have a list to look it up on. Absolutely no problem.